My life, travels and writing

I was interviewed by: Kristen Kooistra

“Have you ever intentionally tried to make your readers cry?Fanni: No, I don’t think so. It’s a thing I actually try to avoid. Don’t misunderstand me, I love when my readers get emotional but, for example, I got really upset with John Green when I was reading Fault in Our Stars. I could smell the effort he put in there to make me cry and I didn’t like that. I cried alright but I didn’t read another one of his books because I don’t like to be manipulated. That is to say, I don’t mind being emotionally manipulated by the author as long as I don’t find him/her out. Once I find that they are in my mind, trying to pull at strings, they lose my interest.Kristen: I think I see where you’re getting. I’ve never intentionally tried either. I know when I’m reading that sometimes I have what I call “good” cries. They might sting a bit, but I don’t hate the whole experience. I can also appreciate that whatever made me cry is fitting for the story. On rare occasions I’ll cry over a book and hate it because whatever caused me to cry is so upsetting that I wish it hadn’t happened. That can seriously drop my love of a story.Are there actions you hope your readers will take?Fanni: I hope they will write to me and tell me what they liked, what made them happy, what made them cry. I dream about inspiring them, maybe to fan fiction, maybe to fan art and one day it would be nice to hear a young writer to say they were inspired by me. I also hope my readers will stop for a moment and reflect on what they read and maybe just maybe they will take something from it. I hope to spread a culture of kindness and open mindedness.Kristen: One of the most amazing things I’ve learned in the past year(since I started contacting authors) is how much of an impact I can have just by saying that I enjoyed their story. I wish I’d known years and years ago that it meant so much to authors. I’d have done it sooner!”